1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to foot protective devices, and, more specifically, to a multipart device for attachment to an ice skate to protect the skater's feet and ankles from cuts and blows.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Previously, a variety of covers for ice skates have been devised which function to shield the skater's feet from cold and dampness. These covers include a buckle closing overshoe patented by Freeman (U.S. Pat. No. 1,160,159); a tie and snap-on skate jacket patented by Bloomberg (U.S. Pat. No. 1,714,760); a tie-on device patented by Ohler (U.S. Pat. No. 2,029,787); a zip-on overshoe patented by Fischer (U.S. Pat. No. 2,109,566); and an insulating cover which buckles and ties onto the skate, which was patented by Saunders (U.S. Pat. No. 2,984,917).
In each case, these covers, although providing some protection from the environmental conditions, do not serve to adequately shield the wearer's feet from cuts and bruises which often occur, particularly during hockey games, from contact with other skaters' blades, hockey pucks and sticks. Moreover, these skate covers are all constructed in such manner that applying them to and removing them from the user's skate is quite time-consuming and ordinarily requires the use of two hands.
It is well known by participants in the sport of ice hockey that broken bones and severe bruises, as well as lacerations of the feet and ankles, occur all too commonly during the course of normal play. Such injuries may be completely debilitating, and mere anticipation of such an injury may prevent the hockey player from participating to the fullest extent of his ability; in either case, with the resultant consequences of lost games, decreased gratification, and possibly even lost employment.
Various attempts by others have been made to address these concerns. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,806,975 and 1,832,866 which both issued to Johnson, disclose toe guards to crimp onto the extreme forward end of an ice skate and which were secured by the skate's laces. These devices do nothing to protect the sides and heel of the foot or the ankles, and were awkward and time consuming to attach to and remove from the user's skates.
An alternative protective device was illustrated in Popular Science magazine in 1940 which consisted of a chain mail jacket worn over the entire skate, except the toe region. Clearly such a jacket would be very heavy, contributing of course to player fatigue, which itself can lead to increased injuries and decreased performance.
More recently, U.S. Pat. No. 3,806,145, which issued to Czeiszperger, discloses a skate guard of hard plastic molded to conform to the shape of a skate shoe or "boot". The device includes a toe and foot side guard fitted to a particular skate and secured semi-permanently or permanently by stapling or gluing a flange to the sole of the skate shoe. No provision is made in this device for protection of the top of the foot and the ankle, and it is sized and fixed to a particular skate, not for easy attachment and selective removal or interchangeability from one pair of skates to another.
Patents for goal-tender's skates, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,351,537 and 4,453,727, which issued to Seidel and Bourque, respectively, disclose skates which are formed of hard plastic to protect the wearer's feet from injury caused by blades and flying pucks and stick blows. In each case the protective skate shoe portion is rigid, limiting foot movement to some extent, and is a permanent part of the skate, limiting usefulness.
Nothing in the prior art suggests a multi-part, multi-function skate attachment which conveniently and comfortably protects the both the feet and ankles of the skate wearer, thus optimizing use and the intended protective function.